9 (2005)

A rag doll fights a monster that has been stealing the souls of his people.

Director:

Shane Acker

Writer:

Shane Acker

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 4 wins.

Storyline

In a ravaged post-apocalyptic Earth of a distant future, an animated rag doll struggles to survive against the perils and the creatures of a monstrous world. To be more specific, the relentless Cat Beast, a towering and murderous automaton, is decimating 9's clan, and pretty soon, there will be no one left. The robot is after their proud souls and it is unstoppable. Is this the end of 9's people?

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Plot Keywords:

rag doll | soul | precursor to motion picture | number in character's name | no dialogue | 

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Taglines:

9 To Save Us.

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Genres:

Animation | Short | Fantasy | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

None

Release Date:

21 April 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

9

Company Credits

Production Co:

UCLA Animation Workshop

Technical Specs

Runtime:

11 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

This film was Shane Acker's thesis project at UCLA film school.

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Connections

Featured in 2005 Academy Award Nominated Short Films (2006)

User Reviews

one of the best animated films ever made

This is a really fun animation, mostly because it's just so simple of a story very detailed in animation and visually exciting. I mean, for all the complicated methods of the computer animation with great lighting effects and detailed skins and movements of the characters and their effects on the environments, it's a very easy man-vs-monster story that can appeal to everyone.

A raggedly named 9, or marked 9, or the ninth raggedly or something to that effect is tragically left alone after its partner 4 sacrifices itself to a monster that steals its soul. 9 devises a way to defeat the monster so that it will no longer torment it, and in the process discovers a way to provide closure to the souls' entrapment (the souls of 1 through 8). This is presented through faction fantasy pretty much existing as never-before-seen.

It's very enjoyable and visually amazing. The monster seems almost perfect for the environment they come from, and the characters are very well emotionally presented considering their darned faces. The plot contains no real desire to be stretched into feature length or accepted as important, just presents six minutes of about as much fun as six minutes can give.